What Represents You?

The icebreaker to our team day today was bringing a product that you feel represents you or best describes you.  This proved quite difficult for me, I'm never good at these things and what made it even worse was that I set up the icebreaker myself!

If this item was from anywhere it would have been easy. I could have brought in a number of items including the following: -

• One of my lovely camera as I can't go anywhere without one, whether its my iphone camera, Diana F+ or DSLR.  With cameras, you can choose many settings and many lenses and I think this represents life as well as you can also choose how you decide to lead your life.  Also I see having a camera will allow to capture photo opportunities and I believe that in life you need to capture every opportunity you get.  Also my blog is linked to cameras so I think its only right that a camera is one of my choices.  

• A selection of photos which I guess links in with the camera above.  I like the idea of memories and I think photos do that.  With pictures you don't have to say much as it normally says it all for you which is a bit like me.  I don't say much but when I do I think its relevant, sometimes its what you say rather than how much you say.

• A tea - At first a bit mild but when the tea bag stays in a bit longer, theres flavour and becomes nicer.  Again like me, I might at first seem a bit distant and I may not always make the first impression, but once you get to know me a bit more, I hope you would realise that I am nice!

• Map of Hong Kong - I think life is a journey and at times you need to have a destination to help you move on it life.  Also it would need to be a Hong Kong Map as I originate from Hong Kong, although not born there, I see my roots as being very important and I love every minute that I'm there

• A picture of a dog - Although I don't like dogs, my chinese zodiac is a dog and there characteristics is very much like me.   'The Dog is a giving, compassionate personality. He offers kind words, support and advice to friends and family. He is a listener, always available to lend an ear or a shoulder to a friend in need. Often Dogs know more about their friends than their friends know about them or even themselves! Dogs are incredibly attentive. Sometimes though, Dogs should pay more attention to their own needs. In private, many Dog people worry a lot.'  The last phrase is so me! 

The item I ended up bringing into the day to represent me was a Hello Kitty Easter Egg.  Reason being is that its girly, a bit like me, and that it originates from Japan which is one of my favourite countries and that I hold dear to me heart.  I love the culture and the people.  

Aren't they cute????

So what what represent you?

xoxo

Breakthrough Breast Cancer

For the past 2 months we as a business and as a store have been busy raising money for Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Breakthrough Breast Cancer is a pioneering charity saving lives and changing futures.  Recent figures show that breast cancer rates in the UK have increased by 3.5% in 10 years with 47,700 women diagnosed with the disease in 2008 compared with 42,400 in 1999.

Thats why its so important to drive awareness of breast cancer and to support where ever we can.  For women it is as simple as Touch, Look and Check.  http://breakthrough.org.uk/breast_cancer/breast_awareness/index.html

Thank you to everyone who has supported us in store over the last few weeks.  We have been doing a bikathon and dressing up, (all very hard work, especially under some bright lights!) and have raised a lot of money.  Thank you.

(All images taken from Camera function on iphone 4)

If you can support in anyway, visit the website for more info

xoxo

The Weird and the Wonderful

At first I wanted to just blog about my dinner and what I made for myself and Sin, but instead I want to share what we lovely Chinese eat, as my dinner can definitely be said to be weird and wonderful!

Firstly my dinner.......ready.....ok lets go...................or maybe lets have a look at the ingredients first........

Yes, you see right, one of the ingredients was Coke!  My dish today was Coke Chicken!  Yes you read that right, Coke Chicken and it was yummy!

(Fry the onions, then fry chicken for a few minutes, then pour in 500ml of Coke and cook for 30 minutes - Lomo Lomo Application with Diana on iphone 4)

Heres the final result

So thats just one dish, here are a few other things we eat but I'm sure many would find weird.

(Almond drink, nice hot or cold, toast with peanut butter and condensed milk, lychee and mango fruit pastilles, green tea chocolate - pictures were taken with Lomo Lomo Application but created into this collage by PhotoShake - application on iphone 4)

(Hot green tea milk with taro (delicious), mango ice with mango, green tea Macau tart, big thick toast with lots of ice cream)

In HK theres more of this and its definitely one reason why I miss it so much and why I put on so much weight when I go back!

And finally my Hello Kitty pic of the day (forgot to post one yesterday)

(Hello Kitty Chupa Chups with a free charm!)

xoxo

Be The Dice Man

Ever heard of the book called 'The Dice Man'?  Well the book tells the story of a psychiatrist who decides to make decisions based on a roll of a dice.  As you can imagine handing over your life to dice means anything can happen.

So Lomography Gallery London decided to base a workshop around this.  'Be the Dice Man with the Diana F+'.  The idea of the workshop incorporated the chance aspect of Lomography.  As a group we wondered the streets around Carnaby Street with a dice in one hand and a sheet in another telling us what to shoot depending on the roll of the dice.

(Taken with the Diana Camera on the Lomo Lomo Application on the iphone 4)

Some of the options available included: -

• Shoot a tourist
• Walk 15 steps, shoot up
• Shoot Love

Some of my photos are below: -

(A double exposure shot - Cupcake shop in the background with the Lomography stickers - taken with the Diana F+ with Flash)

(Another double exposure shot with the Lomography crew and Traffic People - one of my favourite shops - Diana F+)

(Some of the Lomo Workshop group - Diana F+)

(The prophecies 1 and 2 - Diana F+)

(Not sure what I was trying to do here! Diana F+)

(I had spun round 5 times and took the first thing I saw - double exposed though! - Diana F+)

Definitely a fun workshop and something I tried again today (more on that later).  Maybe one day I may use the dice to decide what lottery numbers I should choose!

xoxo

P.S.  The book is highly rated, so if you are looking for a book to read, give it a go xoxo

Why Do We Pull Faces?

...that is my question of the day, if I was to ever have one!  After going through my pictures today, I came across a number of pictures where we are pulling  faces.  Is it because we're in pain?  Upset? or just being plain silly?  I will let you decide....and at the same time have a laugh!

(Why is Yik upset and what am I trying to do? Taken with iphone 4)

(Is Yik in pain?  Taken with Lomo Lomo application with the Double Exposure camera)

(Looks like I'm in pain now! Taken with iphone 4)

(Not sure what Sin is trying to do! Taken with iphone 4)

(I think Sin is a bit upset that I forced him to model these ear muffs! Taken with iphone 4)

(Sin pulling another face! Taken with Lomo Lomo application with a Diana)

And finally nothing to do with the post, but I wanted to post a picture of Hello Kitty, as I'm such a huge fan! Sad I know!  Think I will post one everyday at the end of my blog

(Taken from Lomo Lomo Application using Double Exposure Camera)

I wonder what other funny faces we end up pulling in the future?

xoxo

My Thoughts Go To All Those In Japan

Today is one of the saddest days in the Far East, and my thoughts go to each and every person in Japan and to those who have friends and families today.  The earthquake today was one of the biggest since records began.

Japan is definitely one of my favourite countries, although I have visited twice already I would love to go.  I thought I would share with you some of my favourite pictures which I took in Japan.

(Harajuku - one of the trendiest places in Japan, taken with Canon 450D)

(Akiharbara - Japan, home of Manga, taken with Canon 450D)

(Uniqulo, taken with Canon 450D)

(Harajuku - taken with Canon 450D)

(Just some of the vending machines available...you can normally get everything and anything, taken with a Canon Compact Camera)

(Shinjuku, yum yum, taken with Canon 450D)

(We all love the V sign, taken with Canon Compact Camera)

Lets all pray for Japan

xoxo

The new addition to my family......my Diana F+!

I thought I would introduce you to the new addition to my camera collection, the Diana F+.

(Taken from Lomo Lomo using the Diana camera on iphone 4)

I first came across Lomography when I went to Urban Outfitters and brought a Fisheye camera for my sister in law.  Nothing more came from this until I saw it in many places in my recent trip to Hong Kong and I came back and did some further digging.

Back in the early '60s, the Diana camera was a cult legend, famous for its dreamy, radiant, lo-fi images.  The Diana F+ is a new twist on the classic.  It uses 120mm film (yes, I didn't know what they were to start off with either), and the film is paper and not plastic like the 35mm film, normally a roll takes about 12 pictures which are of a square format.  I did debate for quite sometime if I wanted to get a camera which wasn't digital, but I did like the uncertainty.

(120mm film, yes a lot bigger....taken using the TiltShiftGen application on iphone 4, note the background is blurred which is one of the features from the application)

So the Diana F+ allows me take double exposures, if not triple exposures, use 35mm if I change the back of the camera, take pictures with sprockets (you know the holes on the negatives, the pictures would have these), take instant pictures (using an instant back) and change the lens of the camera...so lots to experiment with.

I first played around with it last week at a Lomography workshop (That will be another post), pictures to follow soon...I do hope they turn out well.

Have a look at the Lomography Site and maybe give it a go, you never know what photos you will get!

http://www.lomography.com/

xoxo